The NFL transaction wire got interesting Thursday when the Jets swooped in and signed DT Trevor Pryce, who had been released by Baltimore early in the week. The Ravens assumed they could bring Pryce back later this season, and he didn’t even bother to pack up his locker anticipating a return. The Ravens actually cut Pryce to bring back S Ken Hamlin in a similar role, and the Steelers (Baltimore’s Week 4 opponent) executed the same strategy with Byron Leftwich earlier this year. But Pryce’s $2 million 2010 contract with Baltimore was guaranteed because he’s a vested veteran, so when the Jets swooped in with an offer, he had the chance to make double money for the rest of the season, and that proved too juicy a proposition to pass up.

It’s a blow to the Ravens, who lost backup DEs Justin Bannan and Dwan Edwards via free agency in the offseason. Pryce didn’t start any of the first three games of the season, as Cory Redding came to town and started, but Pryce is still a solid 3-4 defensive end who can hold up against the run and provide some pass-rush punch. Losing him as depth hurts the Ravens, and losing him to the AFC-rival Jets hurts even more. Thet Jets can use Pryce at end so that Sione Pouha can move inside to team with Mike DeVito on the nose to replace the injured Kris Jenkins.

While the Ravens may be irate at what Pryce for choosing to leave (and Michael Lombardi thinks they should be), they’re the ones that took the risk. They’re the ones who put Pryce on the open market. To put it bluntly, they’re the ones that fired him, whether or not they intended to bring him back. You can’t blame Pryce for pursuing double payment for the year, especially when he’s 35 and in the twilight of his career. And the Jets are a natural landing spot for Pryce since he played under Rex Ryan in Baltimore and knows new teammates like Bart Scott and Jim Leonhard. It’s a coup for the Jets, and they deserve credit for swooping in when Pryce hit the market.

As it ends up, the price of the Pryce roster gamble ended up being much higher than the Ravens expected.